[torontoraptors10Participant]

I’ve been hearing a lot of things about Karl Malone and Utah Jazz. I’ve heard he is still upset about the Jerry Sloan situation and how Greg Miller said he was a pain the ass for the Jazz. Here is the story from yahoo.com:
 

There’s quite a bit to Gordon Monson’s column revisiting of the end of the Jerry Sloan era in Utah, none more surprising than the claim from Jazz legend Karl Malone that Malone had to pay for a ticket from a scalper to watch the Jazz on Feb. 11 of last year (a day after Sloan retired) after the team told him they were out of ducats.

It’s been almost a year to the day that Jerry Sloan abruptly retired from the Utah Jazz in a move that absolutely nobody saw coming. Following an in-game and then postgame tiff with then-star guard Deron Williams, Sloan apparently felt unsupported by management, and quit despite the organization’s attempts to win him back. Just as abruptly, Malone flew to Utah to speak his piece with the media before the following game against the Suns, whereupon he was told that the game was sold out. Whereupon I tell the Jazz that I’ve seen countless local "celebrities" sneak onto or given good seats on press row, and then tell the Jazz to find Malone’s 6-9 frame a folding chair or two.

Monson, in a brief aside toward the beginning of a must-read piece, had this to say:

 

What happened to Sloan had festered inside Malone for long enough. In the immediate aftermath, he came to Utah to express concern, buying his own ticket to the next game at EnergySolutions Arena via a scalper because the Jazz had told him there were no tickets available for him, and spoke to reporters.

The turn in front of the reporters spoke to Malone’s distaste with how GM Kevin O’Connor handled Sloan’s frustrations following his back-and-forth with Williams and Sloan’s exit, as he told the media he would give the Jazz "a D or F, and I would lean more toward an F."

He’s right and wrong. We’ll get to that aspect in a second.

First, the part where the Jazz are completely wrong? I don’t care how late Malone flies in. I don’t care if he’s there to stir things up that you want nothing to do with as you deal with the craziest three-day-span (Finals included) in team history, or if he finished his career with the Los Angeles Lakers some seven years earlier.

You find a guy a seat. You stick him near the bench. You offer a team investor the story of a lifetime in an otherwise miserable game and setting against the Phoenix Suns (the Jazz lost that night, badly), and wonder if he’ll move to the hallways where the GMs hang out. You find a luxury box, and bring him some tasty Mexi-spring rolls. Or, you do as dozens of teams have done for years, and work over press row a little bit, move things around, and find a seat for the anti-dignitary (of sorts) courtside.

[Also: Kenyon Martin agrees to sign with Clippers]

He’ll get free box scores, an Internet connection, pretzels and pop. All the perks. Parking, too.

You figure something out, and quick, that doesn’t have Malone (assuming he’s telling the truth) relaying these embarrassing things a year later. Now, it’s more than feasible that the Jazz were able to scare up a ticket or two, that the seats weren’t to Malone’s liking, and that Karl decided to pay a stiffer fee to sit in a seat that wouldn’t stiffen his back. Through all of his strength on and off the court, Malone has always enjoyed playing the martyr to the press, and this could be another example of such.

It doesn’t mean that the Jazz couldn’t have avoided it, though. Assuming Malone’s story is spot on.

O’Connor, a year later, doesn’t like people like yours truly, Gordon Monson, or Karl Malone pretending as if they were in the meeting between Sloan and the Jazz GM following his fight with Deron Williams. But you don’t have to be in the meeting when you have second-tier unnamed sources describing exactly what you would think someone like Sloan would do in a situation that felt to him the absolute apex of his team undermining his ability to lead as he saw fit. Everyone can roll back on their ideals in a time of great storm and stress, as Sloan may have done, but it just isn’t Jerry Sloan’s style to take himself and his longtime lead assistant (Phil Johnson) away from his Jazz late at night following a game, with over two months left in a season.

And if we’re completely wrong in this, well, Sloan has earned that benefit of the doubt. Sloan and Johnson aren’t talking about it, either way. That’s where Karl is right or wrong. Sloan and his longtime aide-de-camp have made as much clear with their silence. They want nothing to do with talking about specific details behind an unfortunate divorce. I’m sure there are times where Sloan loves it when Karl stirs things up a bit, but I’m sure there are just as many times where he doesn’t want to be reminded of the whole affair.

As for the scalped ticket? Utah’s Energy Solutions Arena holds 19,911 people, and every seat was sold that night. Doesn’t matter. They could have found another, no matter how critical they knew Karl was going to be about Sloan and Utah’s separation.

And here is what Greg Miller had to say, via hoopshype:
 

Karl Malone

I have always believed in taking the high road and addressing my grievances in private. I have always remained silent relative to the media on those types of issues for that reason. However, when Karl Malone recently made comments about how he was treated by the Utah Jazz when he attended a Utah Jazz game last season, he crossed a line. He put me in a position where I have to defend the Utah Jazz and set the record straight. I can no longer afford to sit back and let Karl make comments that are factually inaccurate without defending the franchise and our family.

Karl Malone was a warrior. It has been said that nobody worked harder than he did when he was a member of the Utah Jazz. He was one of the greatest power forwards to ever play the game. His statistics speak for themselves: career averages of 25 points and 10 rebounds per game, 14- time All-Star, two-time MVP, Hall-of-Famer, the achievements go on and on. He played for the Utah Jazz for 18 seasons. During that time he missed only ten games. Karl, along with John Stockton, led the Jazz to the NBA finals twice. His number hangs in the rafters of EnergySolutions Arena and his likeness stands tall in the plaza. Karl’s value as a player to the Utah Jazz is difficult, if not impossible, to quantify.

Karl is an extremely generous person. I am personally aware of many charitable things he’s done over the years, and undoubtedly he’s done more for the less-fortunate than most of us will ever know. He’d give you the shirt off his back.

Karl has been honored and respected by the Utah Jazz franchise and the Miller family since he arrived here in 1985. My dad tore up a half dozen contracts during Karl’s career because Karl kept demanding more. Karl was high-maintenance- on a scale few people are ever exposed to- throughout his career. My dad accepted that because Karl gave everything he had as a player, and he brought 25 and 10 every night. The benefits were clearly there. I have tried to leave it at that and respect him for what he’s done for the Utah Jazz. I’ve bitten my tongue time and again when Karl has made derogatory comments. I’ve tried to keep in mind the words of one of my mentors close to the situation who said “Karl Malone is giant pain in the ass, but he’s our pain in the ass.”

The fact is Karl is still as high-maintenance as he ever was, but now he has nothing to offer to offset the grief and aggravation that comes with him. Some would argue that he could coach our big men. I would love to have Karl inspire them and teach him how to be warriors like he was. That can’t happen. Karl is too unreliable and too unstable. Let me explain.

When I was the general manager of the Honda dealership Karl and John Stockton co-owned in Sandy, Utah, I was responsible to coordinate the grand opening. John and Karl agreed to sign autographs for one hour beginning at 3:00 as part of the ceremony. People started lining up first thing in the morning and by 3:00 there were hundreds of people lined up throughout the dealership. John arrived three minutes early and had a seat at the autograph table. At 3:15 Karl still wasn’t there. Concerned about keeping John longer than agreed, I made the decision to have John start signing autographs. Karl showed up at 3:30. Some people stayed around and formed a second line to get Karl’s autograph, but most left disappointed and angry.

A couple of years later there was a lockout in the NBA. By then, the Honda dealership was established, employing about 85 people. Karl co-hosted a radio show at that time and made some comments on the air about wanting to play for a team “in a town where it rains” and when the lockout was over he’d “demand to be traded”. His comments were well documented. The next day car sales dropped by half. Karl continued to make similar comments on his show. After a few days I drove to the studio that broadcast his show and waited until his show was over to speak with him. I told him I respected his right to say whatever he wanted, but that his comments were keeping customers away. I suggested he consider the impact his comments were having on his partner(s) and on the 85 people whose livelihoods depended on customers coming to his dealership. I still remember the surprised look on his face when I pointed those things out to him. Thankfully, that was the end of his trade demands.

Some years later Karl scheduled and cancelled or blew off a number of lunch appointments with me. On three separate occasions Karl had one of his assistants schedule a lunch appointment with me. The first time Karl never showed up. When I called his assistant I was told that Karl had something come up and he wouldn’t be able to join me. We rescheduled. I got a call on the way to the second appointment a few weeks later to tell me Karl couldn’t make it. That happened again the third time a month or so later.

A couple of years ago Karl called me to see if our family would be willing to sell him the real estate under his Toyota dealership in Draper, Utah. I told him I’d be happy to discuss it with him. I drove to the dealership and we met in his conference room. Karl’s disposition was very cold at first, but as the conversation progressed, he gradually warmed up. We agreed in concept to the deal, and by the end of the meeting Karl said he thought we should spend more time together. I agreed and suggested we have lunch a couple days later, to which he agreed. Two days later, as I was about to leave for the lunch appointment, he had someone call to tell me he wouldn’t be able to make it.

A year ago, when Jerry retired, Karl rushed to Salt Lake City. He got in front of every camera he could find at the first game following Jerry’s departure. He positioned himself as an authority on Jerry’s departure by saying something like “the Jerry Sloan I know isn’t a quitter. He left because he didn’t feel wanted.” Karl wasn’t in the locker room during the conversations with me and Jerry. Had he been, he would have seen me (and my mom) do everything possible to convince Jerry to stay. By his own admission Karl hadn’t spoken to Jerry since Jerry left. Karl’s comments on the radio and on national television made an already stressful situation worse. Then in his next breath, on national television, Karl asked me to hire him as a coach.

These are just a few experiences I’ve had with Karl that clearly demonstrate that he can’t be counted on. I am not willing to invite the elements of unreliability and instability into the Jazz organization. It would obviously do more harm than good.

Earlier tonight I sent out the following tweet relative to Karl’s claim that he had to buy a ticket to that Jazz game from a scalper because he couldn’t get one from the Jazz: “Hey Karl- you’re lying. You have my number. Next time you need a seat to a Jazz game call me. You can have mine.” All three statements are true.

Karl has been welcome at Jazz games since he retired- not just as a guest but as an insider, as alumni. Jazz staffers and management have gone above and beyond to show him respect and take care of him and his family.

Karl, I’m not sure where or how our relationship became so sour. I wish it was otherwise. I’m sorry if I’ve offended you in any way. I’d love to do whatever I can to mend the fence and make you feel welcome at Jazz games. I would love to have you as an ambassador for the Utah Jazz. You have a standing invitation to do both.

And this is what Deron Williams had to say about Karl Malone:
 

Jody Genessy: D-Will on Malone claiming he got Sloan fired: "I don’t respond to people who talk about themselves in the third person." via @Brian Mahoney

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[SwatLakeCityParticipant]

I defintely agree with what Greg Miller said. Malone is just bitter, and refuses to see what really happened. Honestly there’s alot that goes on in the locker room and behind closed doors that we fans don’t know about, and for good reason. This is just a prime example of what the Media and fans can do with just a little bit of information such as Dwill and Coach Sloan having a fued after a heated game against the Bulls, Coach Sloan retiring a few days later, and Dwill getting trading to the Nets a week later. I know they all happened in succession but that does not mean that they are related. Once again the media took too much out of this and so did Malone. And speaking of which, this happened almost a year ago, why we are still talking about this? Its over, its done, forget about it, move on. I don’t how this is still the case, but Malone is just as much as a head case as a retired HOFamer as he was a player. Great player but he too had a diva attitude too just like Dwill. Yes, I agree Dwill shouldn’t have gone to management too talk about how Jerry Sloan was playing him. That’s not his place, he is just a player. Dwill is just as much as employee as he is a basketball player. Jerry Sloan was his boss at the time he was with the Jazz. If that’s how the boss wants to employ you, than that’s just the way it is is. Dwill should have just sucked it up and played his heart out and proved to Coach Sloan that his way is better, instead of crying to management to try and change it. When Dwill did that, Jazz management did not respond by taking the player’s side. Like I said Coach Sloan retiring and Dwill and Sloan fueding were unrelated events even though they happened in succession. I truly think that Coach Sloan retired for a number of reasons, not just because of a diva player. He’s better than that. It might have been part of his reasoning, but a small, minor portion. It really was unfortunate that the media blew this out of proportion for a HOF coach. A really sad way to end your career, just like it was for Coach Paterno and Penn State this year.

As for what happened with Malone having to use a scalper in order to purchase tickets to a Jazz game, here is where I disagree with you. Malone was trying to once again break a huge story to the media. Malone could have called Greg Miller and got tickets. Miller would have gladly given them up. "Hey Karl – you’re lying," Miller wrote on Twitter. "You have my number. Next time you need a seat to a Jazz game, call me. You can have mine." Malone could have called any person within the Jazz organization and could have gotten a free ticket. He could have called Kevin O’Conner, he could have called Gail Miller (co-owner of the Jazz), he did not have to use a scalper but why did he, in order to break a huge story to the media. This was just Malone’s recent ploy to use the media as a tool to once again rave about how horrible Coach Sloan’s career ended. Yes, I get it that you loved him (so did I, who didn’t love him, he was a HOF coach), yes, I get it that his career shouldn’t have ended that way, but think about it, would such a HOF coach leave because of 1 diva player? No, if that were true than he would have left a long time ago. Heck he could have even left while Malone was still playing. Because even though he was a HOF player he was still a diva, and if Coach Sloan did decide to retire because of one diva player (Dwill) then why didn’t he do it when another diva was playing for them (Malone)? Maybe it was because that wasn’t the reason. Besides, this happened almost a year ago, forget about it, move on. I can’t believe Malone is still bitter over something that happened almost a year ago.

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